Cancelled Trump-Albanese meeting should not be ‘politicised'
Former Labor councillor Linda Scott discusses the cancelled meeting between Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and US President Donald Trump, urging for it not to be 'politicised'.
'Let's not politicise foreign affairs,' Ms Scott told Sky News host Paul Murray.
'Let's not undermine the Australian government's efforts, whoever they are, to get a good deal for Australians.'
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West Australian
33 minutes ago
- West Australian
World left waiting as Trump departs G7 for Situation Room leaving behind cryptic messages
US President Donald Trump made an abrupt early exit from the G7 summit in Canada on Tuesday as he rushed back to the White House Situation Room to try to avert a full-blown conflict in the Middle East. Mr Trump's sudden post-dinner dash from the mountain wilderness of Kananaskis, Alberta, on Monday evening (Tuesday morning AEST) was described as a positive development by Emmanuel Macron and 'understandable' by the Australian government even as it deprived Prime Minister Anthony Albanese of his eagerly anticipated first face-to-face meeting with the US President. Mr Macron told reporters Mr Trump was pushing for a possible ceasefire between Israel and Iran as they entered their fifth day of reciprocal airstrikes with military and civilian casualties rising on both sides. 'An offer was made especially to get a ceasefire and to then kick-start broader discussions,' Mr Macron said, insisting any attempt to overthrow the Iranian regime would be a 'strategic error.' But as he boarded Air Force One in the Canadian twilight, Mr Trump took aim at 'publicity seeking' Mr Macron's ceasefire statement as 'wrong!' 'He has no idea why I am now on my way to Washington, but it certainly has nothing to do with a Cease Fire. Much bigger than that. Whether purposely or not, Emmanuel always gets it wrong. Stay Tuned!,' he said. The cryptic social message followed an apparent warning from Israel's ambassador to the US, Yechiel Leiter, about a possible impending military operation that would take the world by surprise. 'When the dust settles, you're going to see some surprises Thursday night and Friday that will make the beeper operation almost seem simple,' Mr Leiter told Merit TV. The ambassador was referring to an audacious Israeli attack last September that targeted pagers and walkie-talkies used by members of the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah. Trump's Truth Social outburst capped a day where he had earlier stoked alarm with the stark warning that, 'Everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran!' without elaborating on the reason why the city's 10 million residents should flee. 'Iran should have signed the 'deal' I told them to sign. What a shame, and waste of human life. Simply stated, IRAN CAN NOT HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON. I said it over and over again!' he said in the same message. In the Iranian capital city, images of panicked residents stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic on the Karaj-Chalus road out of Tehran merged with dramatic footage of an overnight missile strike on a state TV station that caused debris to fall on the news anchor during a live broadcast. In North America, it had been a confusing 24 hours of mixed messages from the Trump administration. The US President had initially signalled he would not put his name to a joint statement on the Middle East drafted by G7 leaders from France, the UK, Germany, Japan, Italy and Canada, but he later relented. The statement, issued on Monday evening local time, reiterated a 'commitment to peace and stability in the Middle East.' It stressed support for the security of Israel and its right to defend itself, while restating that 'Iran can never have a nuclear weapon.' 'We urge that the resolution of the Iranian crisis leads to a broader de-escalation of hostilities in the Middle East, including a ceasefire in Gaza,' said the statement. Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong told ABC's Afternoon Briefing the Government welcomed the statement. 'We want to see security and peace for Israelis and for Palestinians and all the people of the region,' she said, repeating calls for 'de-escalation' and a return to 'dialogue and diplomacy' to avoid 'risk to more civilians and more countries.' As reports circulated of the US possibly becoming involved in the conflict, Senator Wong pointed to official US administration language of 'maintaining what is described as a defensive posture.' 'But I come back to the central point. Everybody agrees Iran is a threat. It's been a destabilising force in the region for many years,' she said. US-based website Axios, citing four sources briefed on the issue, reported that the White House was in talks with Iran to set up a meeting between US envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi to reach a diplomatic solution on a nuclear deal and end the war between the two nations. The meeting, if confirmed, could be a pivotal moment in determining whether the US would be pulled into a wider conflict to eliminate Iran's nuclear program or if there was a pathway back to diplomacy. US officials have indicated the Pentagon's 30,000-pound 'bunker buster', the only air-delivered bomb capable of destroying the highly protected underground enrichment facility at Fordow, could be wielded as leverage to push the Iranians back to the table for a deal. Just hours after Mr Trump's evacuation order, US defence secretary Pete Hegseth told Fox News the President was still seeking a nuclear deal with Iran. 'What you're watching in real time, is peace through strength and America First … We are postured defensively in the region to be strong in pursuit of a peace deal. And we certainly hope that's what happens here,' he said. 'President Trump has made it clear it (a deal) is on the table, the question is whether Iran will take it,' he said. Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi had earlier indicated that Tehran was open to the prospect, suggesting in a post on X that Mr Trump could stop the war with 'one phone call' to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he was 'genuine about diplomacy.' As tensions continued to escalate in the region, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese repeated the Government's warnings that assisting Australians trapped in both countries presented 'challenges' due to closed airspace. 'We want to make sure that people are looked after, but they need to be looked after safely as well,' urging those affected to shelter in place. Experts say that while the crisis may hold few immediate ramifications for Australia, there could be a longer-term impact. If the US became directly involved on strikes against Iran, it may call on Australian support, said Dr Alex Bristow from the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI), pointing to requests for 'through access and overflight for US aircraft in northern Australia' during the strikes on Yemen in October 2024. 'Iran has threatened to retaliate against countries providing military support to Israel and Australia has nationals throughout the region,' he said. Canberra would also be concerned about the US maintaining deterrence in the Indo-Pacific if the US was distracted by a protracted crisis in the Middle East, he said. Dr Ben Zala, senior lecturer in International Relations at Monash School of Social Sciences, agreed. 'A United States that is utterly distracted by an all-consuming conflict in the Middle East is not a terribly reliable partner for its East Asian allies,' he said. Australia must also reckon with the fallout of the crisis for the global economy, growth and the volatility of oil prices, warned Treasurer Jim Chalmers on Tuesday. 'It's a perilous moment for the Middle East, but also a perilous moment for the global economy,' he told Sky News.
West Australian
an hour ago
- West Australian
Energy minister plugs in for power price cap reforms
Caps designed to protect power users from excessive price hikes are not working as intended and need refining, the federal energy minister will concede in his first major speech since the election. A convincing Labor win also has Chris Bowen hopeful Australia can triumph in its bid to co-host global climate talks and muscle out competitor Turkey, with a decision expected soon. In a wide-ranging address to the Australian Energy Week conference in Melbourne, Mr Bowen will promise changes to the so-called Default Market Offer rules to force retailers to compete harder for customer dollars. "The DMO was intended to act as a benchmark price to stop the worst forms of price gouging, while leaving the job of putting downward pressure on prices to competition between energy companies," he will say on Wednesday. "However, I'll be frank. I don't think it's working that way and reform is needed." In several states, regulators enforce caps on what retailers can charge households and businesses to protect the hundreds of thousands of customers unable or uninterested in chasing a better deal. Caps are reviewed annually to reflect the costs of generation and moving electricity around through poles and wires. In NSW, South Australia, southeast Queensland, it's the independent Australian Energy Regulator's job, while in Victoria, the Essential Services Commission sets benchmark prices. Changes to AER's price cap mechanism have not yet been locked in, but could include clamping down on what retailers can claim back from customers on their bills. Mr Bowen said it was hard to defend price caps when 80 per cent of billpayers could be getting a better deal. "That's why we have work underway to deliver a better regulated pricing mechanism which will put downward pressure on electricity bills and also ensure the energy market better utilises the huge uptake of rooftop solar and batteries," he will say. Mr Bowen will declare Labor's thumping election win as a vote of confidence in its energy and decarbonisation policies. He says it puts Australia in a strong position to secure the rights to co-host the COP31 climate talks alongside Pacific nations. An announcement is possible at the UN climate meetings underway in Bonn, Germany. The bid has come under pressure following the federal government's proposed decision to grant an extension on the North West Shelf gas plant's operating life. The project was singled out by Oil Change International in a report showing the United States, Canada, Norway, and Australia are responsible for nearly 70 per cent of projected new oil and gas from 2025 to 2035.
Perth Now
an hour ago
- Perth Now
Treasurer unveils top priorities for second Labor term
Treasurer Jim Chalmers is set to lay out his key priorities for reform as he confronts "intensifying pressures" on the economy. Fixing the nation's stagnating productivity and turning around the budget's outlook amid forecast deficits as far as the eye can see are topping his list. As the economy records anaemic growth, Dr Chalmers on Wednesday will push for the nation to recognise "three blunt truths" standing in the way of higher living standards. "Our budget is stronger, but not yet sustainable enough," he will tell the National Press Club in Canberra. "Our economy is growing, but not productive enough. "It's resilient, but not resilient enough - in the face of all this global economic volatility." Dr Chalmers is vowing to ensure Labor's second term is consistent with those priorities. And despite the progress made on getting inflation back within the Reserve Bank's target band, the treasurer will say there's still more to do. Dr Chalmers will identify productivity as the government's primary focus. "Our economy is not dynamic or innovative enough," he will say. "Private investment has picked up, but not by enough to make our capital deep enough. "Skills aren't abundant enough or matched well enough to business needs." On the government's productivity roundtable in August, the treasurer will say it won't be a move to "retract or retrace" the steps taken in the first term, but an effort to renew and refresh. Weak productivity growth is a major problem for advanced economies around the world. "Too often it's seen as a cold, almost soulless concept when it's really the best way of making people better off over time, creating more opportunities, making our economy and our society more dynamic," the treasurer will say. In Australia, labour productivity has stagnated since the COVID-19 pandemic. The latest GDP figures released earlier in June showed a fall in the year to March. The 2022 election coincided with the largest quarterly fall in productivity growth in almost half a century, the treasurer will say.
